Better Not Be Any Bats
by LAGC
Summary: Everyone has fears, entrenched fears. When those fears belong to a survivor like Face, well you know something wretched embedded them.
1. 1984

Disclaimer: I do not own, nor did I create, any of the A-team characters (main or support) nor do I own, nor did I create, any of the episodes. That credit is due to Stephen J. Cannell and his associates. Any familiar catch phrases or settings also belong to the Cannell team..

Spoiler Alert: References characters, locations, plot, and revelations from Season 3 Episode 10: "Sheriffs of Rivertown."

Author's Notes: This is piece is based on a statement Face utters about bats: "Boy, oh boy, I sure hope There aren't any bats in here."

 **Special Thanks** to **Miss Eclipse** for being my gracious sounding board and offering me guidance and suggestions to help me get this piece written. Without her sincere ideas this would still be trapped in my writer's blocked brain

Summary: Everyone has fears, entrenched fears. When those fears belong to a survivor like Face, well you know something wretched embedded them.

 **BETTER NOT BE ANY BATS: By LAGC**

 **CHAPTER ONE**

 **1984 -**

Hannibal sighed heavily as he landed on the sofa in his current abode. His men dropped into their own spots on the furniture. Face shared the couch with him.

"Well that plan came together." Hannibal blustered "And we got paid in full on this one."

"Yeah I guess so Colonel. I've even got a pending date with Nikki, if ever I find myself in Oklahoma." Face replied wistfully.

"Piece of cake, Colonel. Just like always." teased Murdock.

"Clearly locking you Fools behind bars, didn't knock any sense into your thick skulls! I fell asleep at my Rivertown sheriff's desk, and woke up in my van in LA! Somehow- even in that cage- you suckas drugged me again! When I ain't so tired I'm gonna pound those thick skulls of yours!" grumbled BA.

Everyone was too tired to even pretend to be frightened by the Big Guy's tirade, and he was too tired to even care. Each man fell into his own silent thoughts. Eventually hunger kicked in. Hannibal phoned in an order to a local pizza delivery shop.

Thirty minutes later the pizza guy was knocking on their door. Face was just coming out of the bathroom when the guy arrived. He called out that he'd answer the door so no one else would leave the living room and miss whatever show they had begun watching. Face walked into the living room to see that Murdock had settled on some old 1930s horror movie. BA was watching it too. Hannibal emerged from the kitchen carrying drinks for everyone.

While setting down the soda cans, Hannibal asked, "So what did you select, Captain?"

"Dracula's Daughter, " Murdock replied in his best vampire voice.

Face passed out the pizza and then took his own seat. It was obvious he was purposely ignoring the tv. Hannibal raised a curious eyebrow as Face now opted for the armchair with the poorest view of the screen. Once everyone ate their fill, Face quickly popped up to gather the rubbish. Returning from his trip to the trash barrel, he perched in his chair and began earnestly reading a random magazine.

"Not interested in the film, Lieutenant?" Hannibal asked.

"It's a classic, Faceman." piped up Murdock.

"Ah, vampire films just don't appeal to me. Never have, even as a kid."

No one pushed the conversation any further. Three men enjoyed the movie while the fourth buried his head in his periodical. An hour later the movie wrapped up. Murdock stood up and took a great stretch as Hannibal clicked off the tv. With a nod of his head BA pointed out that Face was asleep in his chair. Hannibal carefully removed the magazine which had landed across Faceman's mouth. Murdock gently covered him with a throw blanket.

"I wonder why the movie didn't capture his attention? Face usually enjoys a classic film?" pondered the Captain.

"It was because of the bats." BA stated flatly.

"The bats, BA?" queried Hannibal turning his full attention to his Sergeant.

"That's what I said. Faceman doesn't like bats." the burly man repeated.

"Yes I must admit to thinking that myself. Just during this last mission, he did complain about possible bats in that mine." admitted Hannibal.

"I don't just think it, Man. I KNOW it!" asserted BA.

"Why, I wonder, is our Faceman so adverse to the species of flying mammals known collectively as bats?" Murdock asked.

"Nam, Fool. You were barely conscious so maybe you didn't see. The night we all got captured, that damn jungle was swarming with bats." BA elaborated in a rare melancholy tone.

Hannibal gazed down at his Lieutenant, then added, "You're not wrong BA, but for the bats to have triggered Face to break cover like he did that miserable night, well, I suspect his phobia was set much earlier in his life.


	2. 1953

Disclaimer: I do not own, nor did I create, any of the A-team characters (main or support) nor do I own, nor did I create, any of the episodes. That credit is due to Stephen J. Cannell and his associates. Any familiar catch phrases or settings also belong to the Cannell team..

Spoiler Alert: References characters, locations, plot, and revelations from Season 3 Episode 10: "Sheriffs of Rivertown."

Author's Notes: This is piece is based on a statement Face utters about bats: "Boy, oh boy, I sure hope There aren't any bats in here."

 **Special Thanks** to **Miss Eclipse** for being my gracious sounding board and offering me guidance and suggestions to help me get this piece written. Without her sincere ideas this would still be trapped in my writer's blocked brain

Summary: Everyone has fears, entrenched fears. When those fears belong to a survivor like Face, well you know something wretched embedded them.

 **BETTER NOT BE ANY BATS: by LAGC**

 **CHAPTER TWO**

 **1953-**

"Run! Run, boy, run. Quick into this house." Momma hissed urgently. She lead her small boy into a decrepit abandoned Victorian. They had been running down this dingy street for what seemed like forever to the child. All the while Momma had been telling him to move faster and always turning to look back over her shoulders. This race had started when an ugly man with a very scary voice had startled Momma as they were eating ice cream at the bus station. Momma had grabbed him and run off so abruptly that he had dropped his cone of chocolate with jimmies. That made him sad.

Now they were finally getting off the street but this house didn't look any better than the sidewalk to the confused worried boy. Once inside, Momma ran into a big dusty room. Against the wall, barely visible in the darkness, was a massive fireplace.

"Quickly, son. Curl up and hide in the corner of the hearth. Don't say a single word or make a single sound. Don't move. Stay hidden! No matter what you hear. Promise me!"

"Ok Momma." whimpered the child as Momma placed a huge heavy metal fire gate in front of the hearth, completely encasing him.

Once she had done this, he heard Momma run off toward the door that they had entered through. Her footfalls weren't even dim yet when he heard the door crash open, like it had been kicked in. He knew that sound because once the police had to kick in their neighbors door to rescue the lady from her horrible husband. The boy wanted to call out for his mother but he remembered his promise to her to remain silent and hidden.

He listened to his mother scream and run up the stairs in the front hall. Then he heard the scary laugh of the ugly bus station man. As little as he was, the boy understood that it was a laugh that meant bad things were going to happen.

"Might as well stop running, Samantha, it's as good as done now. You didn't honestly think the Boss would let you get away from him did you? No one quits working for the Boss. People only get terminated, especially disposable employees like you."

"Please just leave me alone. I'm no threat to the Boss. I'm not even that valuable to him. There's a thousand women just like me to fill my spot at the club. I just want to leave LA and start over. Please." Momma begged.

"Stop wasting my time, Samantha. Get down here now! Maybe if you don't make too much of a fuss when I drag you back to the Boss, he"ll let you have your old job back." sneered Ugly Man.

"NO! I ain't going back!" Momma shouted as she ran higher up the stairs.

"Hey where is that brat of yours. You were pulling him along with you tonight. He'll be a nifty bonus prize to bring back to the Boss." hissed Ugly Man

"NO! He's got nothing to do with this! You wont touch him. I swear you won't!"

"Watcha gonna do to stop me? He's got to be around here somewhere."

Then the boy heard what might have been a chair tumbling down the stairs and crumbling at the bottom. The Ugly Man growled like an angry guard dog and ran up the stairs.

"You're so gonna regret that! The Boss simply said to bring you back, he never specified what condition you had to be in!"

Momma shrieked again, only this time it wasn't just a scared scream. It was a pain filled yowl. The boy heard more noises that let him know that Ugly Man was beating his mother.

Again the child's instinct was to run out and help her but he remembered his promise. Momma was crying now and mumbling but he couldn't make out her words. He heard heavy footsteps and dragging ones coming down the stairs, across the hall, and out the destroyed door. Then everything became silent. Not one sound. Not one voice. Nothing.

The boy was alone. All alone. His mother had been taken from him.

The terrified child huddled in his pitch black hiding place. The only things moving were his muddy tears as they slid down his dirt covered cheeks.

Time passed. Even as terrified and distraught as he was the boy began to realize that his hiding spot had a very nasty smell and there was a faint odd sound coming from above him. The sound was getting louder, quickly. There even seemed to be a draft coming down from above. While the boy tried to make sense of this information he was suddenly surrounded by hundreds of small creatures hurtling past him. Colliding with him. Bouncing off him. They were screeching as they inundated him.

In spite of his promise the boy hurled himself out of the fireplace. Followed by a cloud of small brown bats setting off on their nightly forages. He was so frantic he ran without thinking and tripped over the fire gate. He tumbled and slammed his head against an ancient overturned marble table and lay motionless.

The next thing he was aware of was a gentle male voice. The child opened his eyes to see sunlight fighting its way through a dusty cobweb filled window. He was looking into the eyes of a stranger. He reflexively jumped backwards.

"Easy there, Little Guy. Don't move too fast, you've got a nasty lump on your head." said the man as he passed an ice pack to the boy. "Here put this on that lump. Be gentle."

The man helped his patient sit up. "What's your name? Why are you here?"

The boy held the chilly pack to his head. He took a deep breath and replied, "I don't know why I'm here. I don't know my name."

As young as he was the boy understood that this wasn't right. He should know why he was where he was and he should know his name. Everyone knows their own name. He began to get frightened, and he remembered being really frightened last night too. This upset him even more and he started to cry.

The nice man tried to comfort him, patting his back and saying, "That's ok Little Buddy. Don't worry. You'll figure everything out. Are you hungry?"

Between his sobs the boy replied, "Maybe...I'm really thirsty." The man quickly gave him some water from his own lunch box. "I remember being really really scared last night. Some things came out of the fireplace and flew around me and bumped into me. I tried to run away."

"Ok. That explains a few things. Those animals were bats. They live in that chimney. I bet that when you tried to get away from the bats you fell and hit your head. That would explain your bump. That's probably why your memory isn't working quite right."

The little boy nodded. He'd seen bats in storybooks. He decided that he liked this man so he smiled at him and nodded again. The man smiled back and introduced himself saying his name was Chuck. Chuck explained that he and his partner worked for the city inspecting old buildings to make sure they were safe places. They were checking out this one and found him. Chuck's partner was calling in a police man to help them take care of him.

"Ok." was all the little boy could muster up. Things again became a whirlwind when the policeman arrived. The officer took the boy to his squad car and drove him to the emergency room. There a doctor treated his head wound. The child stayed in the hospital overnight. A social worker arrived to assess the situation. Try as he might, the young child couldn't remember how he ended up in the condemned house. Since he had no recollection of his name, his relatives, or his address the social worker took him to a group home.

There the social worker introduced him to kindly Father Magill. Thus began Templeton Peck's life at Angels Guardians Orphanage.


	3. 1966

Disclaimer: I do not own, nor did I create, any of the A-team characters (main or support) nor do I own, nor did I create, any of the episodes. That credit is due to Stephen J. Cannell and his associates. Any familiar catch phrases or settings also belong to the Cannell team..

Spoiler Alert: References characters, locations, plot, and revelations from Season 3 Episode 10: "Sheriffs of Rivertown."

Author's Notes: This is piece is based on a statement Face utters about bats: "Boy, oh boy, I sure hope There aren't any bats in here."

 **Special Thanks** to **Miss Eclipse** for being my gracious sounding board and offering me guidance and suggestions to help me get this piece written. Without her sincere ideas this would still be trapped in my writer's blocked brain

Summary: Everyone has fears, entrenched fears. When those fears belong to a survivor like Face, well you know something wretched embedded them.

 **BETTER NOT BE ANY BATS: By LAGC**

 **CHAPTER THREE**

 **1966-**

Lt. Peck was alone, all alone. His team was gone.

The mission had gone straight to Hell. The VC had attacked their campsite. In the ensuing madness, Hannibal and BA had been captured and he'd lost track of Murdock.

Lt. Peck felt an old familiar terror creeping up his spine. He was alone. His people had been taken from him. A voice from deep inside his subconscious told him that he needed to hide. That he must hide and be silent. Then his conscience mind roared against that command. No he had to rescue his people. He had to find his people so he wouldn't be alone.

Thankfully his military training was embedded. It allowed him to silence that eerily familiar voice thereby curbing his rising panic. That enabled him to function.

"OK priority one evade capture. Then find and rescue my team. I've got to stay with my unit," the young GI thought to himself. He looked around to assess his options. Hearing the enemy approaching from his left, Peck went toward his right. Carefully his picked his way across the jungle floor and discovered a small dark cave.

"Ok, seems to be a decent hide out. Maybe Charlie will get tired of looking for me then I can find Murdock and go rescue the Colonel and Baracus." Peck reasoned with himself as he stealthily entered the cave.

The entombing blackness of the cavern did nothing to sooth the young soldier. The darkness, the fear, the sense of loss- all seemed too familiar to him yet he couldn't explain why. He just wanted to stay hidden until daylight, then maybe he'd be able to solve his problems.

The noise of a nearby struggle dragged the GI from his frenzied thoughts and veiled memories.

Angry dangerous VC voices were yelling. Commands were being delivered. Then Peck heard a voice he had prayed not to hear, at least not like this. It was Capt. Murdock contemptuously stating his name and rank to his captors. Murdock then yelled, in Vietnamese, a common insult at the commanding enemy officer. The sound of Murdock being slapped and then beaten assaulted Peck's ears and psyche. This was all too terrifyingly familiar. Some long forgotten memory, deep in the recesses of his mind, was attempting to break free. Peck's self control was crumbling, he was quickly loosing his mud here.

But Peck was a good soldier, a well trained soldier. He let that training take over trusting it to keep him alive. This autopilot mentality enabled him to stay hidden in his cave trying to plan a rescue and escape for his team. He shifted his position to peer out from his hiding spot. Peck watched a new level of horror unfold.

By now simply beating Murdock lost its appeal to the VC commander. He decided to torture the Captain more maniacally. The VC leader ordered his men to tie Murdock up between two trees, and let him dangle there like wet laundry on a clothesline. Smith and Baracus were on their knees under heavy guard a few feet away. The commander then started shooting at Murdock, grazing the bullets near his head and defenseless body.

The gunshots rang out through the night. The noise was deafening and amplified by the echoes in the cave. This cacophony startled the colony of bats residing in Peck's hideout. They all, seemingly at once, took to the air. Frantically flapping wings propelled the frightened animals into the night. The space was so thick with their furry bodies that Peck was pelted repeatedly by the mammals. Being overrun by the bats overwhelmed the exhausted lieutenant. A long repressed voice in his mind screamed, "Run! Run boy, run!"

And that is what he did, blindly, out of the concealment of the cave. The influx of the bats had distracted the VC from Murdock. Some chuckled about waking the flying foxes. But one keen eyed grunt spotted Peck emerge from the cave and scramble away into to brush. That soldier immediately sounded the alarm and his unit broke into pursuit.

Murdock, despite his abuse, began to again scream insults in both languages. Hannibal ordered Murdock to be silent and received a barbaric blow to his ribs. His Captain ignored the order in a desperate attempti to distract the enemy. He was trying to buy Peck time to escape. When the insults didn't work Murdock quickly resorted to screaming out seemingly important Intel.

Alas it was all to no avail. The enemy made short work of ferreting out Peck. They worked him over just as they had Murdock then threw him at the Captain's feet. Between the beating, the exhaustion, and the emotional demolition Peck was beyond functioning. He couldn't respond in any way to his captors questions. He wasn't even defending himself against the new round of blows and kicks aimed at him. Finally bored, and spent of his vile rage, the VC commander ordered the end of the brutality and for Murdock to be cut down.

Hannibal was ordered to carry Murdock for the Pilot's brutalized limbs would not support him. For similar reasons, Baracus was then made to carry Peck. The group made its way back to the VC camp, the prison that would hold the A-team for many weeks to come.

As BA carried his Lieutenant he kept whispering,

"Hang in there, Buddy. You're not alone. We're all together. We're gonna be just fine."

It was those words that calmed the terrified boy running amok in Peck's mind.

It was those words that kept hope and determination alive in the heart of the soldier.

Peck managed to mumble, "I believe you, Sergeant."

To which BA replied, "Ok. then LT put on your brave Face."


End file.
